About Me

Bilingual Roman Catholic priest of the Southern Dominican Province. The "homilettes" on this website are completely the work of Fr. Mele. He may be contacted at cmeleop@yahoo.com.
Telephone: (415) 279-9234.

Economic equality has never been the goal of Christian
social thought. Rather from Scripture to
modern papal thinking, Christians have opted for justice. This means that a society looks out for all
its members so that everyone’s basic needs are met. In contemporary times this vision is being
ignored. The wealthy are separating
themselves from the poor. They are more
likely to live in gated communities and to send their children to private
schools. They also are more often found
in church than the poor. One wonders,
however, if they hear the message from Scripture read there.

In today’s first reading the prophet Amos expresses outrage
at the rich person’s disregard for human dignity. He
says that the rich would sell a slave for a trifling. He adds that they take the poor person’s few garments
as collateral for loans. Then they have
the nerve to lie on those garments in the Temple. In the gospel Jesus identifies himself with poor
people when he says that the Son of Man has nowhere to sleep.

In an age of globalization, creating a just
society becomes increasingly complicated.
But this fact does not excuse us from the responsibility. With so much technology available, there is
no shortage of resources to supply everyone’s needs. We need to rethink priorities. Instead of always strategizing to become
wealthier, we should make sufficiency for the poor a goal. Action steps will include greater social
correspondence among all social sectors.

Today we celebrate the two greatest apostles. Peter was named by Jesus in front of his other
disciples to lead the Church.Paul’s
call took place in a personal encounter with the Lord.He was sent specifically to non-Jews
who came to make up the majority of Christians.Both were martyred in Rome around
the year 64.

The histories of both Peter and Paul illustrate the
Christian belief in a personal God.Today’s
first reading shows Peter being miraculously rescued from prison.It came at a critical time.Peter like James was about to be slain by the
sword of one of Herod’s henchmen.The
Lord, however, spared him so that he might bring Church administration to Rome.Paul always felt himself in close communion with
Jesus.The second reading testifies to his
sense of Christ assistance at crucial junctures in his mission.

The critical element of Christian belief is that God is
personal.He not only exists from
eternity as a communion of persons, he also became human to interact with
us.The testimony from the lives of both
Peter and Paul today shows that his personal presence did not end with his
Ascension.Christ comes to each of us as
well in varied ways.He is found in the
Christian community where divine love is palpable.He is heard in the word of God and even ingested
in the Eucharistic sacrament.He is also,
quite wonderfully, present in the solitude of our hearts.

Today’s gospel completes the great “Sermon on the Mount.”Although most of its material originates with
Jesus, Matthew gives it form. He cuts
and pastes Jesus’ teachings to provide a summary of Christian moral catechesis.
The closing parable can be taken as an
outline for Matthew’s work.

Jesus exhorts his followers to build their houses on rock
not on sand.That is, he wants us to ground
our lives in the beatitudes. The beatitudes describe our goal in life,
basically “the kingdom of heaven.”If the
beatitudes comprise the foundation of moral practice, the commandments form its
building blocks.They oblige us to do the
seemingly impossible like “love your enemy.”They also forbid what seems to come most naturally -- “to look at a
woman with lust.”These commandments
would be impossible to fulfill without divine help.For this reason Jesus includes in his catechesis
a lesson on how to pray.

The “Sermon on the Mount” ends with a number of
proverbs.This material is hardly
redundant or peripheral.It adds needed demonstrations
of how we are to pursue God’s will and not our own. Only in doing so will we
have accomplished the repentance which Jesus preaches.Having established the expectations for Christian
life, Matthew will begin his account of Jesus’ ministry.

Two generations ago false prophets said that the world
was being overpopulated.They predicted
mass famine if artificial methods of birth control were not disseminated.The truth, even then, was that some people –
notably Americans – use disproportionate amounts of resources.Even so, there have not been the great
shortages of food that doomsday sayers forecasted.In today’s gospel Jesus criticizes so-called
prophets in his day who cause unnecessary consternation.

Jesus may well have in mind those who speak of God’s
coming wrath to win the support of the people.They condemn the lack of religious rigor of common people while failing to
show compassion to those suffering hardship.They are wolves under the appearance of shepherds.

Today false prophets criticize the Church for its
positions in defense of human life.They
say – contrary to Church teaching -- that a concern for human dignity leads to helping
the dying take their lives.But a true
concern for human dignity recognizes that every human being is made in the
image of God.We pay homage to human
dignity by serving the dying until their natural end.

Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, OFMCap, has the intriguing
title of “preacher of the papal household.”His duties include delivering a weekly sermon during Advent and Lent to
Vatican officials.In one Lenten sermon
Fr. Cantalamessa advised that people not love others like they loves themselves.He reasoned that many people are so
self-indulgent that they do harm by treating them as they treat
themselves.Although the preacher makes
a good point, Jesus’ maxim found in today’s gospel remains valid.

As Jesus indicates, the “Golden Rule” is not his
alone.Different versions of it are
found in the sacred writings of most religions and well as the Hebrew
Scriptures. Since everyone wants to be
cherished, the rule has been rephrased as “Love others as you love
yourself.”Jesus himself makes this
revision in the Gospel of Luke. The
statement takes for granted that we want what is truly good for ourselves --
nothing false, spiteful, or harmful.

A number of years ago there was a controversy about another
rule of thumb involving Jesus.People
wondered if “What would Jesus do?” (“WWJD?” was the popular acronym) is a
sufficient guide for action.Some
thought it impossible to know what Jesus would do.Really? Doesn’t he tell us what he would do when he
says, “’Do to others what you would have them do to you.’”

In his encyclical Mater et
Magister Pope St. John XXIII wrote of three stages for social action.People are to look, to judge, and to act in order
to bring about needed change.The process
seems to conflict with today’s gospel where Jesus tells his disciples, “’Stop
judging…’” What he means, of course, is that they are not to be
hypercritical.If people were to stop
judging, they might as well forego their intellectual powers.

Hypercriticism is judging another excessively harshly.It gives no leeway for a possible error in
one’s perception of another’s way of being.Hypercriticism assumes an air of superiority over others whose motives are
not fully known. Tobit is hypercritical when he accuses his wife Anna of
stealing a goat in the biblical story.Those
who judge all refugees as self-serving are likewise hypercritical.

As Jesus’ disciples, we cannot avoid judging.But we should not judge severely.Rather we should aim at viewing a situation completely,
assessing motives fairly, and acting carefully.This process amounts to removing any beam from our eyes and helping our
neighbor remove theirs.

Today’s first reading will seem odd to many.Not only are the characters involved in the
story unfamiliar.It also tells a sordid
tale, hardly edifying as part of the word of God.Many will want to ignore it and move on to
the gospel.However, the Church has
chosen this reading for a purpose which begs illumination.

After Ahab’s wife Jezebel had Naboth, the poor farmer, killed
and his land expropriated, Ahab repented.It was said that God was pleased with Ahab’s change of heart and did not
punish him.Rather Ahab’s descendants
would suffer the consequences of his offenses.This saga is played out with Athaliah, Ahab and Jezebel’s daughter.She married Jehoram, the corrupt king of Judah.Jehoram died leaving his son Ahaziah king;
and Athaliah, the queen mother.Jehu of
Israel killed Ahaziah along with another Jehoram, the king of Israel, and most of
Ahab’s other descendants. In this way Ahab’s
dynasty in Israel ended.Meanwhile Athaliah
seized power over Judah.She had all claimants
to its throne killed, including her own descendants.However, one of Ahaziah’s sons, Joash, was
rescued.The high priest eventually anointed
Joash king and had Athaliah slain.

The gruesome story illustrates what Jesus teaches in the
gospel.We have to make treasures of the
right things.If we want power to rule
over people without regard to caring for them in God’s name, we will come to
ruin.But if we use the authority given
to us for true human welfare, we will prosper in God’s eyes.

Although no book of the Bible bears his name, Elijah may be
considered the preeminent prophet of Israel.As a prophet, he received revelation from
God, spoke on God’s behalf, and suffered because of God’s message.However, he was not martyred, which was
considered the prophet’s fate.Rather,
he was taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot.Pope Benedict in his book Jesus of
Nazareth writes that the people of Israel awaited Elijah’s return so
that he might experience a true martyr’s death.

Because of his expected return, some thought Jesus himself
was Elijah reincarnated.When he asked
his disciples who the people were calling him, they answered that some considered
him to be Elijah.But Jesus had another candidate
for the Elijah role: John the Baptist.John,
like other prophets, was beheaded after telling the truth about Herod Antipas.For Jesus, John’s death anticipates the prophetic
“Day of the Lord,” the day of reckoning.

Christians understand the prophets as foretelling Jesus’
coming.How did Elijah do this?There are incidents about Elijah that
parallel experiences in Jesus’ life like providing food for the widow and her
son prefiguring Jesus’ feeding the multitude.Perhaps more indicative, however, is the story of the Lord God coming to
Elijah as a whisper at the mouth of a cave.We see the whisper as Jesus, the full revelation of God in the quite
unassuming figure of a carpenter from Nazareth.The cave too invokes Messianic meaning. It is the depth of being from
which Jesus talks with the Father with whom he is one.

A generation ago the movie “Chariots of Fire” won
critical acclaim.It told the story of
the British runners who beat the favored Americans at the 1924 Olympics.The drama centered largely on Eric Liddell, a
devout Christian.Liddell was forced to
make a decision between competing on Sunday and honoring the Third
Commandment.He did not hesitate to choose
the Lord.Liddell demonstrated the same
courage as Elijah whose spirit Elisha seeks in today’s first reading.

Elijah is the paragon of prophets.He speaks truth to power and exhorts the people
to faithfulness.God favors him the
supernatural capacity of calling down fire on opponents.He also suffers for his convictions.In asking for a double portion of his spirit
Elisha is both reaching for greatness and risking his future.He too will accomplish great deeds but not
without a share of anguish.

Eventually Jesus will prove to be the greatest of the
prophets.He will insist that both kings
and commoners observe the true spirit of the Law.No one will suffer for his convictions more unjustifiably
than he.Without being asked, he gladly
sends his Spirit upon us.We are to carry
on his pursuit of inner righteousness come what may.

For practical purposes Ahab gets away with murder in
today’s first reading.He witnesses the
treachery of his wife but does nothing to stop her.He appropriates Naboth’s garden like a
bandit.He even repents of his crime and
does not face retribution.The story sounds
incredible but there is a parallel happening today.

The wealthy in our society are creating safe havens for
themselves while leaving the poor in misery.They construct gated communities where they are shielded from the plight
of the less fortunate.They send their children
to the best schools while education for the poor often lacks funding.Their politicians and economic advisors make
available ways to avoid paying taxes.But
they become outraged if a poor person uses food stamps to buy a sirloin steak.Meanwhile the wealthy are more likely found
in church thanking God for the good life they have.Where is the justice of it all?

We find justice in Jesus Christ.He insists that his followers take care of the
poor.More than that, we are called to
be the source of reconciliation.We are
to work for the unity between rich and poor, women and men, black and white.If we forsake this responsibility, our posterity
will face the social turmoil that Ahab’s descendants experienced.We pray now for the virtues of justice and
prudence to bring about social peace.

Few gospel passages have provoked more soul searching reflection
than that of today and tomorrow.Seemingly Jesus is calling his disciples not to defend their families,
much less themselves, if attacked.Is
that even humane?Or is Jesus
exaggerating as when he says one must hate one’s parents to be his disciple (Luke
14:26)?

Thomas Aquinas justifies killing in self-defense if one
does not intend to kill the aggressor.The case is not one of doing evil to achieve the good because the
defender acts in place of the civil authority.For Aquinas only the state acting as God’s minister in pursuit of the
common good can take a life.

Then is Aquinas faithful to the gospel?One would be reckless to accuse Thomas
Aquinas of biblical infidelity.He sees
Jesus correctly as talking of personal righteousness.Jesus does not intend that his statement be
generalized to cover every case of evil.He does insist, however, as tomorrow’s passage will show that we love
our enemies.This means that we do not want
them harm.But if they present
themselves as unjust aggressors unstoppable short of killing, then let it be
done.Aquinas will make one exception to
this rule.An ordained man cannot kill
under any circumstances.

Of the longings of the human heart sexual desire takes a
primary place. Beyond intimacy, men
want to dominate women and to use them for self-propagation.Women seek to manipulate men for protection
and for children to mother.Jesus
addresses this mutual exploitation with his commandments in today’s gospel.

Once again Jesus calls for a change of heart. His disciples have to avoid lust, the
inordinate desire for sexual pleasure.Desire becomes inordinate when one seeks sexual relations with someone other
than his wife or her husband.Desire
also looms inordinate when it views one’s wife or husband as an object for sexual
pleasure.As Jesus’ instruction on
divorce indicates, spouses are to cherish one another.Marriage commits two people to love one
another in order to raise children in the likeness of God.

Jesus equating lust with adultery has caused many people
to feel a burden of guilt. Is such guilt warranted?We think so.It is not that we want people to feel bad about themselves.To the contrary, we want people to feel
accomplished by foregoing pernicious desires.Lust can lead people beyond adultery to abandonment of family.By itself, it redirects a person from his or
her primary responsibilities to dwell on fantasies.Although painful, guilt moves one to
repentance.It is part of the journey to
holiness.

Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” explains the meaning of his
call to repentance.In the previous
chapter of Matthew’s gospel Jesus preaches, “’Repent, for the kingdom of heaven
is at hand.’”Today’s gospel passage
continues to describe what that exhortation entails.

Repentance is more than a public sinner’s changing his
ways.It is more than an average
person’s not cursing her adversary.It
is everyone’s letting go of any animosity felt toward neighbors.Put simply, repentance is a conversion of
heart.Jesus challenges his disciples to
forsake the desire for revenge when they are offended.He calls them to reject dismissing a person whom
they find irritating.Rather they are to
seek to know, understand, and to love everyone, especially problematic
people.

We all want to be
esteemed. When someone offends or ignores us, we naturally feel
hurt. We are probably too civil to strike back
physically. Rather, we will say hard words about the
person. More likely, we will harbor demeaning thoughts about him or
her. This is not the way of a follower of Christ. We must
repent. If we look deeper into the person than her bravado, we will find
a child of God also longing for recognition.As an image of ourselves then, we can understand and love her.

“How long will you
straddle the issue?” Elijah asks the people of Israel.He is challenging them to choose between the
Lord God and Baal.The former is
credited with liberating Israel’s ancestors from servitude.Baal is associated with fertility.He is thought to produce rain for the
people’s crops.The people must decide
now to whom they will give allegiance.

First, however, they should take note how the Lord is
active in their lives every day.He has
provided the Law to guide them to justice.He also has responded to their pleas on numerous occasions. He does so
in today’s passage.Elijah calls out to
the Lord in need.Once again, the Lord acts
with mercy and power.

People today continue to straddle the same issue. They know of Jesus Christ who has given them a
more perfect Law.With him they can
freely, even joyfully live in righteousness.They also know of humanly made gods with far-reaching influence.Technology which enthralls as well as makes
living easier is the best example.People
worship it, in a sense, by pursuing constantly new inventions. Which one will
we choose?Christ who works from within
enabling us to love unselfishly or the world of endless fascination.We cannot straddle the issue forever.

According to social philosopher David Brooks people like
to think of themselves as good.Yet they
find themselves, as always, giving in to selfishness and other vices.How do they live with the contradiction?They mix and match trying to keep themselves
on the positive side of the moral ledger.For example, they may cheat on their income tax by saying that everybody
does it.At the same time they may give fifty
dollars to the Peter’s Pence collection. Such moral calculus hardly approaches what
Jesus has in mind in the gospel today.

Jesus wants his disciples to be perfect.They are to give good example and, indeed,
attract others by their moral rectitude.In fact, they are to live in such exemplary ways that their neighbors
will thank God for having them in their midst.

We should never justify immoral acts by saying that
everyone does them.The statement is
false and in any case does not live up to Jesus’ expectations.Some moralists criticize using as a guide to
good behavior, “What would Jesus do?”Perhaps it is difficult to extrapolate Jesus’ actions to modern
society.But we can certainly ask, “What
does Jesus want us to do?”We hear him
telling us in the gospel today to act as a model for everyone to follow.

There is a simple description of St. Barnabas in the
Spanish Language.He is a “santo varón”.Literally, the term means holy man, but it implies a more uncommon
virtue.Barnabas fills the bill
perfectly well.At the beginning of Acts
he generously contributes to the community.In today’s second reading Barnabas rejoices when he encounters living
faith in Antioch.He also shows courage
in searching out Paul and zeal to go forth as a missionary.In an argument with Paul about Mark who once
abandoned them, Barnabas shows a willingness to forgive.

Barnabas exemplifies the fourth of Jesus’ beatitudes in
today’s gospel.He hungers and thirsts
for righteousness.He wants to go beyond
the letter of the law to embody its spirit of acting like God.He does not hanker to be rich or famous but
to always do what is right.He would be
a fine example for parents teaching their children Christian discipleship.

In truth Barnabas makes a worthy model for all of us.When we feel a desire to take an annual
cruise or buy a luxury car, Barnabas teaches us simplicity.When we cannot find the time to visit a sick
friend, Barnabas shows us how to go out of our way.When we have trouble enduring a difficult
person, Barnabas demonstrates patient love.

The metaphorical heart comes in different sizes,
textures, and temperatures.A big heart
will generously share one’s resources.A
hard heart will spurn a plaintiff’s dire plea.A warm heart will listen attentively to another’s problem.Today we celebrate Jesus’ “sacred heart.”The term is meant to convey the Savior’s immeasurable
love for his people.It is holy not
because it stands apart from others.Quite the contrary, the Sacred Heart of Jesus extends itself to
everyone.Jesus loves even those who
hate him.

Today’s second reading from the Letter to the Ephesians
speaks not of Jesus’ heart but our own.However, it proposes that our hearts be nurtured in the love which emanates
from his heart.It is the love
propelling Fr. Rob Galea, a popular youth leader in Australia.Fr. Rob tells how he encountered Jesus after being
entrenched in teen-age vice.He says he
confessed all the pain and anger that had moved him to sin.Then he experienced the joy and hope of his
mercy.Now Fr. Rob sings and preaches of
Jesus’ love around the world.

Fr. Rob’s experience is duplicated a million times a day,
every day of the year.It can be ours as
well when we recognize the false claims of our ever-domineering will. We have to acknowledge that we are not the
center of the world.Christ is because although
completely innocent, he suffered out of love for the world.His love has renewed our hearts so that we
might glorify him by loving others.

“…the word of God is not chained,’” St. Paul tells his disciple
Timothy in today’s first reading.It is
not chained because, first, it is an idea and not a body that can be locked
down.It also is not chained because it
is liberating.It moves people to
act.It foresees an end that is both
desirable and attainable.It promises life
in the full – the absolute joy of knowing God.Yet its vision is so threatening to some that they actually try to
prohibit it.This occurred in El Salvaor
during the 1970s and 1980s.

El Salvador was experiencing severe social oppression. Many rich families wanted to maintain their economic
privilege at the expense of the poor.Church
leaders organized small faith communities among the poor s a pastoral service.These groups reflected on the word of God
together.They dwelt upon passages articulating
God’s love for the oppressed.At the
same time an armed revolution assisted by Communist governments was gathering
momentum.Both movements - the small
faith communities and the revolution -- spoke of social liberation.But their means and ends differed.Nevertheless, the wealthy’s armed militia started
to persecute poor people for possessing a Bible.Heroes like Archbishop Saint Oscar Romero spoke
out against this repression.

We too might see the word of God as a source of
liberation.It can free us from the anxiety
of not having all that others have. It also
assures us that the really important goal is eternal life. It cannot be chained.On the contrary, it can unchain us from
useless worries and prideful ambitions.

The American people have had a split mind on Lyndon B.
Johnson, their thirty-sixth president.Some have praised him for his concern for the poor.Others have judged him as an obsessive and
coercive politician.One edifying
assessment came from Joseph Califano, a former Secretary of Heath, Education,
and Welfare.Before holding that
position, Califano had served President
Johnson as a domestic policy aide.He wrote
that Johnson invited him to his Texas ranch to get acquainted.As they were touring the property, they saw a
poor man waking on the side of the road.Johnson told Califano, “See that man over there.The difference between him and us is only
this much.” Johnson was holding up his hand with the thumb and index finger
only a fraction of an inch apart.Johnson’s words and gesture echo what Paul writes in today’s first
reading.

Paul is writing his disciple Timothy to give instructions
on pastoral ministry.First, however, he
insists that Timothy realize the source of his call.He says that Timothy was chosen not for any
merit or by any birthright.He might
have never known the salvation of Christ.But God called him gratuitously “according to his own design.”Timothy needs to thank him for this gift
which ultimately means eternal life.Furthermore, like Paul he should make every effort to serve the Lord.

We do well also to recognize the wonder of being saved by
Christ.We do not really miss out on much
fun.Rather we know the peace of divine
love.Of course, we want to serve him in
return.We would not possess divine love
if we did not share it with others.Reading Paul’s advice in this letter we learn some of the basics of
service.Our preparation is filled out
by attentiveness to Church leaders today.

As commonly observed, we live in a fractured society and
a fractured Church.In society, the
fault line touches abortion.Should the
state prohibit abortion?Liberals think that
the state has no business regulating what a woman does to her body.Conservatives rightly see the newly formed
being in the woman’s body as human.Therefore, the state has an obligation to protect it.In the Church the determining issue is
artificial contraception within marriage.Liberals believe that it should be permitted while conservatives see it
as wrong.Today’s gospel considers an
equally divisive issue in Jesus’ day.

“’Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?’” a
group of Pharisees and Herodians ask Jesus.The Pharisees would say “definitely not” as the tax compromises a Jew’s loyalty
to God.The Herodians, on the other
hand, think that such accommodation is only realistic.That the two parties are collaborating against
Jesus indicates the great animus Jesus arouses.More interesting, however, is how Jesus deftly handles the challenge.Rather than falling into his adversaries’ trap
by answering their question, he sidesteps the issue.He says, in effect, that each person must
decide for herself what belongs to God and what belongs to Caesar.

We would be more like Jesus if we refuse to categorize
people according to a standard question.We need to respect everyone by engaging him in dialogue.We also should take care not to abhor others because
their opinions differ from ours.Lastly,
we should try to claim as our own the positions of the Church on moral and social
issues.

Global warming is a fact.No one should deny that temperatures have been increasing steadily for
thirty years. But there have always been cycles of warm and cold temperatures for
ages.The critical debate concerns human
responsibility for higher temperatures.Are
artificial pollutants sealing warm air in the atmosphere? Today’s gospel can shed
some light on the moral dimension of the issue.

Jesus is locked in a battle of wits with the religious
establishment of his place.He sees its
leaders as hampering God’s freeing the people of injustice.For him they are like the vineyard that
produces sour grapes in the Book of Isaiah.His parable implies that like the leaders’ ancestors killed the prophets,
they will murder him.

The vineyard in Jesus’ parable may also be taken as the
environment.The wicked farmers then are
those who wantonly contaminate it for profit.Whether or not the result is rising temperatures, leaders of industry are
polluting the earth.As a result, common
people – especially the poor – suffer.Often
the biggest culprits do not stop at murder in pursuing their aims.

Everyone should take care in treating the environment.Although we may not have many resources to manage, we
still can improve it. Using fewer
disposable items is something all might do.
Disposing hazardous wastes in designated places also
assures a safer earth.